The World's Most Elegant Taxi

The World's Most Elegant Taxi

More than winged lions or Carnevale masks, gondolas have become the symbol of Venice, re-created en masse as plastic toys, snow globes, and virtually every other tchotchke known to man. But if you look beyond the kitsch, you'll find an austerely beautiful and elegantly designed boat that has evolved over centuries to meet Venice's unique needs.

The gondola is among the most enduring of numerous flat-bottomed craft that were developed to navigate the lagoon's shallow waters. The first written reference to a gondola dates to the 11th century, and images of the boats appear in Venetian art as early as the 1300s. At the height of their popularity in the 17th century, more than 5,000 gondolas were active on Venice's waterways. (Their number has now dwindled to around 500.) They were made slim to maneuver the narrowest canals and topped with felzi, small cabins that allowed a city full of Casanovas to travel incognito.

The republic's fall in 1797 and the subsequent economic decline triggered experiments in gondola construction that would allow the boats to be handled by one gondolier rather than two. Boat-builder Domenico Tramontin perfected the design in the late 1800s, creating an ingenious asymmetrical hull that keeps the gondola traveling in a straight line even though it's being rowed by a single oar. This would be the last genetic modification to one of the world's loveliest dinosaurs -- for within fifty years, the gondola would be driven to the brink of extinction by engine-driven boats, most notably the vaporetto, Venice's water bus.

Gondolas are made and repaired in a workshop called a squero. Starting with well-seasoned wood, boatbuilders can construct a gondola body in about a month, but embellishments, carved and gilded, can take much longer. The finishing touch is the ferro, the ornament that adorns the bow. According to common wisdom, the ferro's graceful "S" curve is meant to mimic the bends of the Grand Canal, its six prongs represent Venice's six sestieri, and its rounded top echoes the shape of the doge's hat. This explanation was most likely invented by gondoliers in the early 20th century to impress their passengers, but it's ingenious enough to have endured for 100 years and become part of gondola lore.

The most conspicuous squero of the few that remain is at San Trovaso, just down the small canal near the Zattere boat landing. Not far from there is the squero Domenico Tramontin and Sons (Dorsoduro 1542, Fondamente Ognissanti, near Giustinian Hospital. 041/5237762. www.tramontingondole.it), where Domenico's great-grandson Roberto and grandson Nedis continue to practice the family trade. Tours with a translator can be arranged by contacting Roberto via fax or through the Web site. North Carolinian Thom Price came to Venice with a fellowship to study gondola making and never went back. At his Squero Canaletto (041/2413963. www.squero.com) he not only builds boats but also conducts weeklong workshops on gondola construction and Venetian rowing.

The shapely forcola (oarlock) used in Venetian-style rowing is itself a work of refined engineering. To see forcole being made, visit the shop of Saverio Pastor (Fondamenta Soranzo, Dorsoduro 341. 041/5225699. www.forcole.com), open weekdays 8-6. While there you can buy a forcola for yourself; architects I. M. Pei and Frank Gehry are among those who have taken one home.